As the steamer rushes towards the cliff, Neon's minions shoot
at the cornered Vash. When the firing ceases, Neon complements
Vash's bravery. Over the intercom, Neon and Vash hear that Kaito
has been found and captured. Pulling out his gun, Neon expresses
his sympathies to Vash. Suddenly, a minion pulls a Derringer on
Neon. Meryl reveals her identity, and Milly shows herself as well
after de-arming a couple minions. Meryl looks towards our hero
and asks him to fix this situation, "Vash the
Stampede". The announcement of his name shocks the minions.
At that moment the speeding steamer hits a canyon wall, causing
everyone to fall to he floor, except for Vash and Neon, both now
holding their guns. Knowing whom his opponent is now, Neon has a
question for Vash: "Why wasn't a single person killed in
(the city) July?" Vash apologizes and explains that he has
no memory of that day. Neon proposes a duel. If Vash wins, the
steamer will be allowed to stop.

Outside, Neon flips a coin. When it lands, the duel is to
begin. As they wait for the coin to fall, the steamer hits the
canyon wall again, causing rocks and boulders to drop upon the
steamer and duelists. The coin hits the floor and Neon starts
shooting. Vash dodges behind the falling rocks, managing to flip
behind a large one. While he does catch Neon off guard and is
able to shoot the man in the extremely large shoulder pad, Vash
opens the wound on his side. Seeing blood come from the blonde,
the minions believe Neon got a hit. A rock falls towards Vash,
and it's Neon who shoots it away from Vash's head. Neon yells at
Vash for doing such maneuvers with his wound.

In the control room, there isn't good news. The boiler is
overheating. The brakes aren't workable.

Chapter 9: With Desert Lands and a Piece of Sky

Vash stands with Kaito, asking how the boy is
doing. Kaito is more worried about Vash who is running around
with a bullet hole in his side. He asks if the guy has any nerves
in his body. They overhear the engineers talking about their dire
situation. Basically, they need to activate the full brake, but
it's too dangerous since it could overload the "plant,"
so the "plant" needs to be deactivated. Kaito pulls out
his blueprint of the steamer to look for a solution. An engineer
notices the paper and rips it out of the boy's hands. The
engineer realizes that this is how the Bad Lad Gang planned their
attack on the steamer. He stomps on the paper a few times until
his foot is blocked by Kaito's arm. He glares at the boy, blaming
the deaths he's seen on Kaito. The engineers plan to stop the
steamer by themselves, refusing the help of the boy. Vash kneels
by Kaito and only says his name. Kaito understands he must make
up for his mistakes. As the engineers explain the
"plant" to Vash, a woman's scream echoes throughout the
steamer. The "plant" is out of control.

In the "plant" room, something like a female angel
is within a light bulb looking restraint. The "plant"
is a black box within the devises known as "lost
technology." While it provides electricity and thus life for
the people of the planet, no one knows how to build one or even
how it really works. At the moment, the angel within the
"plant" appears to be trying to escape its restraints.
Just then, Vash appears. He tells the people that he'll be able
to hold her for four minutes. He talks to the "angel,"
calling her "sibling," and slowly her
"heartbeat" calms to a stop. Clueless at what Vash did,
the engineers decide to just go ahead and steal the chance.
Cutting through the boiler room, they search for the force stop
system lever. 2500 iles from the cliff edge, they find it just
out of reach behind some steaming pipes. Kaito jumps from behind
the engineers and dives for the lever. The heated pipes burning
through his suit, Kaito finally manages to activate the force
stop.

In the control room, they put the steamer in full brake, but
they are too close to the edge of the cliff.

Outside, Neon drives his vehicle into the path of the steamer.

Kaito wakes up in a room with bandages covering his torso.
Vash, with bandages on his forehead, smiles at the boy. The
combination of the full brake and Neon's actions brought the
steamer to a stop before falling into the ravine. Kaito asks Vash
where his new wound came from. Vash explains that when he went
outside to thank Neon, the guy shot at him. Neon told him to not
be mistaken about his actions, which he did to repay for their
duel (Vash could have technically killed Neon). He swears to Vash
that the next time they meet, they'll settle their fight.

While the engineers and workers run about and fix the steamer,
Vash and Kaito sit outside looking at the rising sun. Kaito
begins to sing. Vash recognizes the song as the one Rem loved.
Vash begins to cry thinking about the woman who so believed in
preserving life. Kaito beats on the guy for being an idiot.

Chapter 10: Little Alkadia

Milly wakes up extremely tired in the morning after a night of
letter writing (she has way too many siblings, and she
wrote to all of them one by one including her parents). Meryl
admonishes Milly for always writing so many letters and loosing
sleep. Meryl herself doesn't write home, believing in taking care
of herself and that it would be boring for them anyway. Then
there is gunfire from outside the window.

On the street, a longhaired, dark looking man apologizes to an
old man and woman, telling them his finger slipped. The old
couple yells at him for trying to threaten them. Vash is
literally stuck in the middle with the old couple hides behind
him and yells insults at the dark man. Vash tries to get the old
couple to stop. When the dark guy has enough from the "damn
father" and threatens to pull the trigger with better aim
this time, Vash pulls the old couple completely behind him and he
goes for his gun. "Not happening!" Meryl and
Milly knock Vash down to the ground before he can do anything.
With the dark man momentarily confused, Milly fires her gun and
pushes over the truck the dark man was on. Meryl yells at Vash,
saying that this was a dangerous situation, which he would have
made worse. Then, the truck knocks over a building (aka the
situation became worse).

In a restaurant, the old couple thanks the girls for saving
them. They ask the girl if they would be bodyguards. Meryl
apologizes and says they have their work to do. The old man then
turns to Vash for help. Meryl, seeing danger ahead, agrees to
take the bodyguard job before Vash can say anything.

The old couple takes the trio to their home: an oasis in the
desert planet. Meryl mentions that it is like a "Jo
Plant." Vash, feeling the earth, say it is a "Jo
Plant", a "plant" that makes the land fertile. 300
meters below the surface is a colony ship. The "plants"
were the hearts of these ships that brought people to this
planet. The old man explains how when he first got the land,
there was almost nothing there. To get it to its current state,
they put their lives and wishes into it. At the house, the old
man explains that the men are working under Morgan, a man who
after the title to the land. They need to protect it so that they
can get it to the bank the next day at nine.

That night, Milly and Meryl are helping with patrol along with
some other men the old couple got. Meryl sent Vash back to the
hotel (men: was it a lover's quarrel?). Meryl walks through the
house and finds a picture with the old couple and two children.
The old man covers up the picture without saying a word to Meryl.

Outside, the dark man meets up with the Nebraska Family.
They've been hired, promised money to pay the bail money for the
father and son of the Nebraska Family.

Chapter 11: Son

On watch outside, Milly asks Meryl what she's thinking about.
Meryl tells Milly about the picture and how she recognized the
boy's face from somewhere. Suddenly, there are noises from a
bush, and the dark man appears with his hands raised. He's come
to try to talk to "father" once more, to tell him that
they are serious this time. Meryl makes the connection that this
man is the old couple's son, Badwick. Looking angry, Milly asks
the dark man why he would shoot at his own parents. He tells her
that it isn't any business of hers. Milly punches the man, ready
to teach him a lesson. Meryl holds the girl back. The old man
comes outside and calls Badwick's name.

Elsewhere, the gang is waiting for at least another hour,
giving Badwick a final chance to talk to the parents. Then Morgan
shows up. Morgan is upset at Badwick, understanding the son would
never kill let alone harm his parents, and calls for the gang to
go ahead and attack.

At the house, Badwick asks the parents as to why they won't
sell the property. The old man says that Morgan only wants the
land like a child wants treasurer. The land is a living thing
that needs to be tended to. Giving it to Morgan would just lead
it to its death. Badwick is upset, not understanding why his
parents are giving their lives up for a piece of land. Out of
fury, he asks if this is to make up for the death of Marcus. The
stunned silence is broken with a loud noise from outside the
house.

Outside, a large cannonball type object has fallen near the
house. The men on guard watch as the cannonball reveals its true
form of a man in armor and then runs away. Marilyn congratulates
her mother for getting close to the house. Morgan reminds them to
not hit a tree. After an odd moment (Marilyn: "Mr.
Cameraman, over here, over here"), Marilyn gets her mother
to take another shot at the house.

At the same time, others of the gang come up to the house in a
jeep and shoot at random. Badwick is in shock, saying out loud
that they started way too soon. He turns around to find his
parents getting armed for the fight. The old man tells Badwick
that it would be okay if he escaped.

Chapter 12: River of Life

It's war at the oasis. The people helping the old couple are
shocked that the Nebraska Family is going all out in the fight.
Milly and Meryl are also in the "battlefield". Meryl
wonders if she can call herself a person. She's about to go
headlong into the middle of the counterattack until Milly holds
her back, asking Meryl why she isn't acting like herself. Meryl
tells Milly that she's jealous of her ability to get upset when
something precious is on the line. Meryl says she has forgotten
who is important to her. She then whips herself back into shape,
saying this is no time to have a weak spirit, and tells Milly
they should go fight.

After a big blast, the old man tells the other guards that
they've done enough and can go. Alone, the old man walks towards
the Nebraska Family. In the house, Badwick yells at his father.
His mother is confident in the old man, telling her son that they
won't let Morgan have what isn't his. Badwick says it's too much
and asks why his father is doing this. The old lady snaps her
crop at the man and calls him an idiot. "We've decide to
protect our and "your" land."

Morgan once again offers to pay for the land. The check is
destroyed by the old man's shotgun. Morgan has decided that
killing the old man is the only way to get the land. The old man
tells Morgan that if he dies, Morgan will be the loser. Morgan
laughs at the comment, and his hired guns get ready to shoot the
old man. Meryl and Milly appear on the scene, threatening Morgan.
The ladies holding a Derringer and a stun gun however don't worry
him. After a tense moment, a large noise comes from the house as
Badwick escapes on a motorcycle. The Nebraska mother throws
another "cannonball" at the fleeing figure. Meryl
hurries to shoot the "cannonball" with her Derringer. A
blast forces the "cannonball" to come apart and do a
serious faceplant into the ground. Badwick is just barely saved.
Sitting on the ground, Meryl can't believe she did it. Milly
congratulates her. Back by the house is Vash, the real shooter,
with his really short appearance. He got his payback for the help
on the sand steamer. Milly yells at their opponents about the
glory known as Derringer Meryl (as Meryl looks suspiciously at
her gun). The other "cannonballs" are shaking in their
armor as the Nebraska Family mother cries about her children
getting hurt. In other words, Morgan has no more backing in the
fight. The old man falls to the ground relieved. From the old
lady, they find out that Badwick ran away with "the
papers". The old couple is left to believe that their son
will choose the right path, his path. Seeing Meryl, he tells her
that you have to walk your own path in life. Life is connected,
even though you live your life separate from your parents.

Elsewhere, Badwick holds the title to the land in his hands,
still not understanding its importance. He starts to rip the
envelope with the deed. Instead, he goes to the bank to turn it
in. Just when he is about to leave, the banker calls him back and
tells him it is a letter of deed transfer. He asks the dark man
if he is "The son Badwick". Badwick, blushing as he
realizes what his parents were defending, replies "Yes!! I'm
that person "

Milly and Meryl runs to their transport. Meryl was up all last
night, and thus the two of them woke up too late. During their
rush, Meryl takes a moment to drop a letter into the mailbox.
"Life is connected---and the head of the flow is now."

Chapter 13: Blood and Thunder

As Vash gets his boots fixed, he tries to convince the
shoemaker to give him some information about something.

Meryl and Milly sit very relaxed on a bench next to a
fountain, both enjoying the good weather. Vash is on another
bench, looking up into the blue sky. Again, a vision of Rem comes
to mind and he wishes he could see her once more. Then a ball
comes smashing into Vash head. A couple of boys come over to
apologize, wondering if the guy is okay. Vash jumps on his feet
and with the ball held by his mouth, he chases the boys. After
some fun, he asks if they want some ice cream. The boys and Milly
are excited by the idea. Vash hands Meryl some money and asks her
to get six of them. Meryl wonders why the extra ice cream, and
Vash looks towards a rather haggard looking girl. She greedily
accepts the cone, but she doesn't trust the people and runs off.
As he plays with the boys and to insurance ladies, Vash senses a
man's presence. A man holding a paper sack. He sits down on the
other side of the fountain from Vash and pulls out a sandwich
from the sack. Through thoughts, the man tells him, "I've
found you, Vash the Stampede." Vash responds without his
voice, asking the man who he is. Legard, is the reply. "I
serve the man you are looking for: Knives." Although Vash
has been keeping a cheery face, Milly still notices something
wrong with the blonde, something frightening in his face.

Vash sits down on a bench and continues to "speak"
with Legard. He wants to know the location of Knives. For the
murder of Rem, Vash wants revenge. Legard admits that Knives is
still sleeping due to the wounds Vash gave him. But he is still
alive. Legard plays with Vash by pretending to kill the haggard
girl from before. He gets the desired reaction of panic and anger
from Vash. He calls Vash's humanity his chains. Getting up,
Legard tells Vash that for today, he is just a messenger. He
shows twelve coins that have been broken in half, each
representing the people who follow Knives, each representing a
person who is after Vash. Legard sets down the sack on the bench
and leaves. Slowing, a thick dark liquid comes from the corner of
the sack. A scream echoes through the square. The wife of the
shoemaker calls murder. She found her husband beheaded. Vash
looks at the leaking bag, furious.

That night, Legard goes to visit a person held up in a
building. He tells the man that the moment he has been
"raised" for has come. It's time for him to repay his
debts.